Linebacker Leo Chenal signed with the Washington Commanders this week, bringing added physicality and versatility to their defense.<\/p>\n
A former Wisconsin standout, coming out of college, he combined strong run defense instincts with explosive short-area burst to close gaps quickly effectively. As an NFL player, his pass-rushing skills have developed over the course of his rookie contract in Kansas City, where he was part of two Super Bowl winning teams. On special teams, Chenal has been reliable, displaying awareness, tackling technique, and speed for field.<\/p>\n
Washington can use Chenal in multiple subpackages, emphasizing his role on early downs and situationally. Coaches have spoke about his film study habits, professionalism, and ability to learn complex defensive concepts quickly. Chenal\u2019s size and frame allow him to play downhill yet disengage into coverage when required.<\/p>\n
Washington\u2019s defensive coaches will aim to maximize Chenal\u2019s instincts with tailored reps and coaching. Schematically, his fit suits gap-control designs and periodic aggressive downhill pressures from the second level. The Commanders\u2019 signing signals belief in his upside and a pragmatic step toward defensive depth.<\/p>\n
Recently, Chenal was in Ashburn to sign his new contract, and while he was there, took a few minutes to introduce himself to the local sports media.<\/p>\n
With a smile on his face, Leo Chenal started out by saying he will bring \u2018violence and physicality\u201d to the Commanders re-made 2026 defense. He added that he is \u201cready to uplift in any way [he] can\u201d.<\/p>\n
Chenal made it clear that he is a versatile defender who can play on the line, off the ball or defending against the pass.<\/p>\n
Asked about the decision to sign with Washington, the linebacker said that he\u2019s \u201cheard great things, especially about the coaching staff\u201d from former teammates [e.g., Andrew Wylie and Nick Allegretti] who have been in Washington under Dan Quinn. \u201cGuys are excited here; guys are excited. Guys are loving football here. I really haven\u2019t heard a bad thing about the culture that they\u2019re building here \u2014 that WE\u2019RE building here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chenal said that the coaches have talked to him about being \u201cunleashed\u201d, in the middle blitzing and having the freedom to go out and make plays.<\/p>\n
He stressed that the Commanders have the roster needed to have a great record and reach the playoffs. In making his choice about where to play, he asked himself where he could thrive individually and experience team success, adding \u201cthis place just stuck out a lot\u201d.<\/p>\n
It feels like this young linebacker with a pair of super bowl rings may quickly become a fan favorite in Washington.<\/p>\n
Chenal confirmed that he had a video meeting with Commanders coaches prior to agreeing to his new contract, and said that his impression was confirmed that \u201cthese guys are legit \u2014 kind, enthusiastic, passionate, you name it.\u201d He also mentioned offhandedly that new defensive coordinator Daronte Jones played at Chenal\u2019s alma mater, Wisconsin.<\/p>\n
He added that he can make big plays on special teams, and mentioned blocking a field goal \u2014 a clear reference to his victory-securing special teams play against the Broncos to extend the Chiefs undefeated record in Week 10 of the 2024 season. He added, with a big grin, \u201cI just love playing football, so, if I can get on the field a little bit more; whatever it is.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Linebacker Leo Chenal signed with the Washington Commanders this week, bringing added physicality and versatility to their defense.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":814208,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2069],"tags":[107294,427,7,6,23612,855,111,10421,6220,2480],"class_list":["post-814207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-washington-commanders","tag-2026-washington-commanders-free-agency","tag-commanders","tag-football","tag-nfl","tag-pressers","tag-washington","tag-washington-commanders","tag-washington-commanders-news","tag-washington-commanders-free-agency","tag-washingtoncommanders"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116235176875781055","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814207","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=814207"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814207\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/814208"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=814207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=814207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=814207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}